6 May 2021 9:34am The state government is ramping up efforts to remove four dangerous and congested level crossings in Preston with a construction blitz said to take place along the Mernda line. Crews are preparing to build a new two-kilometre rail bridge as the crossings at Oakover Road, Bell Street, Cramer Street and Murray Road are removed, cutting congestion and making the roads safer for the more than 82,000 motorists who pass through each day – where the boom gates are down for up to 40 per cent of the morning peak. Works will be carried out until the last service on Tuesday, 11 May, buses will replace trains on the Mernda line between Clifton Hill and Reservoir as the construction crew works inside the rail corridor, installing overhead wiring structures and carrying out signaling, track, and drainage works.